MANY CHOICES FOR OBAMA IN REPLACING BILLINGTON AT LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Only 10 presidents have had the opportunity to nominate a librarian of Congress to oversee America's largest trove of intellectual treasures and to serve as the chief of the sprawling research institution for the nation's lawmakers. And after President Obama replaces James H. Billington, who has held the job for 28 years, it may be a generation before it happens again. That makes the choice facing Mr. Obama a difficult one, made more challenging by the wide range of possible replacements and the mounting criticism of the library and its management under Dr. Billington during the past decade. Dr. Billington, 86, announced his retirement this week amid complaints about its technology resources, personnel issues and a perception that the library had lost its relevance in the digital age. Names of potential replacements are already being mentioned by other librarians, researchers and scholars: Michael S. Roth, the president of Wesleyan, or Drew Gilpin Faust, the president of Harvard; Amy E. Ryan, the president of the Boston Public Library, or Paul N. Courant, the former provost and librarian at the University of Michigan; Douglas Brinkley, the American historian. Several people suggested that Mr. Obama nominate Carla D. Hayden, the chief executive of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore. Asked about the possibility, Roswell Encina, a spokesman for the library, said Dr. Hayden commended Dr. Billington on his retirement and was "flattered that her name is even out there." Dr. Billington's retirement takes effect Jan. 1, and White House officials say the president is months away from an announcement. In picking a new librarian, Mr. Obama could again choose an historian, or he could turn to a professional librarian, a college president, a management professional, a former politician or a Silicon Valley technology expert. "A scholar or public intellectual will bring a vision for the mission of the library in its service to Congress and the nation," said W. Ralph Eubanks, who served for 18 years as the head of the library's publishing division. But he added, "An alliance with visionaries in the tech world is going to be a key to the success of the next librarian." The 1802 statute that created the position of librarian of Congress does not specify a term of office. By longstanding tradition, it has become a lifetime appointment, vacated only by retirement or death. Herbert Putnam, who served for 40 years, from 1899 to 1939, was one of only 13 people to hold the job. Critics of Dr. Billington say that in the later years of his tenure, he failed to significantly seize the opportunity of the Internet to make the library's collection of 160 million items easily available to the world. "The challenge today is much more enormous," said Peter R. Young, the former head of the library's Asian division. "It's growing with mega, mega amounts of data in terms of video that is incredibly expensive to store. It's really left that field. It's left it to the private sector." Continue reading the main story Dr. Billington and current library officials dispute that contention and point to a series of projects that have put thousands of documents online. But that criticism could lead Mr. Obama to pick someone with particular skills in the online world. Mr. Obama has already tapped executives in Silicon Valley companies to help with technology problems in his administration. In 2013, he lured Mikey Dickerson, a top Google engineer, to help rescue the website HealthCare.gov. Mr. Dickerson now leads a technology troubleshooting team in the administration. Last year, the president picked Megan J. Smith, a former Google executive, to be chief technology officer of the United States. But others say Mr. Obama should focus on management issues by hiring someone with experience leading a large bureaucracy. The library has about 3,100 employees and an annual budget of more than $600 million. In the past decade, congressional oversight agencies have documented a series of management failures involving contracting, storage of materials, technology and record-keeping. A college president like Dr. Faust or Amy Gutmann, the president of the University of Pennsylvania, might help with those issues, according to scholars and people in the library profession. Officials at the American Library Association said they would probably urge the selection of a professional librarian to lead the institution. Courtney Young, the president of the association, said that it would be important for Mr. Obama to find someone with an understanding of scholarly research, in deference to the central role that the library has long played in advocating and supporting intellectual inquiries. She said other skills were necessary: management, leadership, communications, marketing, resource development. The next librarian will have to do even more with technology, she said. "The nature of information is changing, and the way people are getting that information is changing," she said. Her organization will be working for the next six months to make sure the right person is chosen, but she declined to offer any names. The association will be "very open to an opportunity to talk with whomever makes the decision or is advising on the decision," she said. "Of course, it would be fantastic if the librarian of Congress were a librarian." If the president accepted that recommendation, his choices might include Anthony W. Marx, president of the New York Public Library; David S. Ferriero, the archivist of the United States; or Sarah Thomas, the librarian at Harvard. But whomever Mr. Obama picks must pass muster with the Republican-controlled Senate, which won the right to approve a president's librarian nominee in 1897. That could be difficult for Mr. Obama, who has clashed with lawmakers over his appointees. REFLINK: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/13/us/politics/many-choices-for-obama-in-repl... Best Regards, Raghvendra R The information contained in this electronic message and in any attachments to this message is confidential, legally privileged and intended only for use by the person or entity to which this electronic message is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient, and have received this message in error, please notify the sender and system manager by return email and delete the message and its attachments and also you are hereby notified that any distribution, copying, review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this electronic transmission or the information contained in it is strictly prohibited. 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